So…you’re thinking about buying a new toaster oven. You’ve seen one in a popular magazine that has lots of cool features and even comes in pastel pink, and now you’re hooked. But WAIT! Don’t buy it yet! One of the best ways to determine the quality, reliability, and value of something you think you want to purchase before you fork out the dough for it is to go online and comparison shop. Online comparison shopping is a user-friendly, avoid-the-salesperson-that-has-no-knowledge, gasoline-saving way of finding out the information you need. Another plus to online comparison shopping is that it saves you a lot of time in physically going from place to place to find the best deal, and you have access to lots of stores and vendors besides the ones within driving distance—all with the click of a mouse. To find comparison pricing for major items carried in chain department store chains, you can go to each store’s website and see if they sell it, and what their price is. Although that will take less time than driving to each store, you’re still limited to browsing for stores that you’re familiar with—there are plenty of stores available online that you’ve probably never even heard of. And what do you do if you don’t know anything about the product?
Since 1936, Consumer Reports has delivered detailed recommendations and evaluations of consumer products, while maintaining a reputation for objectivity. Published by Consumers Union, an independent nonprofit organization, Consumer Reports has a stated mission to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves. CU accepts no outside advertising or free test samples, and has no agenda other than the interests of consumers. Consumer Reports is one of the most noted names in resources for product information, and their website contains thorough information about a wealth of consumer products from appliances to automobiles, and even items as diverse as diet plans and vacation destinations. For information about products and their performance, Consumer Reports is your first place to visit.
After you’ve decided on one or more versions of a product you’re interested in, it’s time to go look for the best deal. If you are seeking to compare prices from one company to another, there are several terrific websites that can assist you with this. BizRate Shopping Search and mySimon are two of the most useful, expansive comparison shopping sites. Items are grouped by department, just like in a brick-and-mortar store, and you can also shop based on the site’s shopping picks, product reviews, and the top-rated products in each department. There are a couple of important differences; BizRate offers user reviews so you can read other people’s experiences with products, and mySimon not only lists the vendors that sell the item you are comparing, but it also rates the web integrity of each company, and you can enter your zip code to get the total price of each item including shipping. The item and vendors who sell similar items are listed as well as reviews of the products. Both of these sites are extremely user-friendly. The crown jewel of comparison shopping sites is most likely PriceSCAN, which offers all of the same features as the other shopping sites, but also lets you search for "functionally equivalent" products—items that meet the exact same specifications as the item you’re researching, but that might save you money while delivering exactly the same quality and service. PriceSCAN offers price comparisons, product reviews, and vendor ratings, just like the other shopping sites, but it also has blogs where site visitors can discuss hot topics and consumer issues.
There’s no doubt that online comparison shopping can save you a lot of time and a lot of money, no matter what item you’re comparing. For example, looking on mysimon.com, a Canon PowerShot SD400 is $334.90, including shipping, at the MP Superstore. The same item from Staples has free shipping, but with sales tax the total comes to $427.98! That’s $93 you can save just with a few clicks of the mouse! So you see, you can actually save a lot of money. The other good selling point (pun intended) about online comparison sites is that you can look at stores you have never considered that may have items you are seeking. All comparison shopping sites have search utilities and most have A-Z indexes to make your searching easier.
It’s difficult this day and age to find a bargain without driving all around town and trudging through store after store checking price tags. However, if you use the Internet instead to do your comparison shopping, you will be able to save some cash. Then you can combine the time you’ve saved with the money you’ve saved and take some well-deserved time off—but be sure to shop online for a good vacation deal first!
Article Resources
By Buzzle Staff and Agencies
Published: 6/9/2005
Article By: Lee
Listed In: Comparison Shopping